“Mama Africa” memorial service draws hundreds.

Hundreds of people came out to celebrate the life of legendary South African singer Miriam Makeba (also known as “Mama Africa”) at a public memorial service Saturday, reports the BBC. The 76-year-old singer died last weekend when she suffered a heart attack after performing at a benefit concert in Italy. The service drew fellow musicians, poets, South African government officials. Makeba, who was exiled from the country for using her music to speak out against apartheid, was described as “a woman whose name became synonymous with the worldwide struggle for freedom in South Africa,” by the nation’s Arts minister, Pallo Jordan. Hugh Masekela, a trumpet player and her former husband, performed at the service, and a South African poet, Maishe Maponya, read a poetic tribute. Thabo Mbeki, South Africa’s former president was also in attendance. The current president, Kgalema Motlanthe, who was in the United States for the G20 economic summit, sent a video message. “Let us say it loud and clear. Miriam Makeba was not affectionately called Mama Africa for nothing. Her music reverberated with consciousness about the real conditions of South Africans,” he said. South Africa started a period of national mourning the day after her body was flown to the country last week. Makeba, who was the first Black singer to win a Grammy award, also was the voice behind such hits at “Pata Pata” and “The Click Song.”

World leaders, minus Obama, meet to discuss economy.

Twenty leaders from all over the world converged in D.C. this weekend to talk about ways to solve the international economic crisis, reports CNN. The Group of 20 leaders (who’s nations collectively own 90 percent of the world’s economy) agreed on some aspects of the causes of the crisis and some places for solutions and decided to meet again in April to look at the progress. Various economic stimulus plans, such as interest rate cuts, found support among the nations; they also agreed to help developing nations hit hard by the global crisis. They also agreed on greater oversight for credit agencies. President George Bush called the meeting “very productive.” “All this is an important first step. In other words, this is a beginning of a series of meetings,” he said following the summit. President-elect Barack Obama did not attend the meeting, instead sending former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and former Republican congressman Jim Leach. “There is one president at a time,” a joint statement from Albright and Leach said, echoing the words of Obama during his first policy speech. “So, the president-elect asked us to represent him in receiving the views of these important partners.” And Obama’s absence didn’t seem to fade other world leaders, such as U.K. Prime Minister Gordon Brown, who believes he would be onboard with what they decided anyway. “What we decided today – to use fiscal measures to stimulate demand, and all countries signed up – is very much in line with what Obama said he would do,” he said. Hundreds of demonstrators hit the streets surrounding the World Bank to speak out against everything from the government to international financial institutions to capitalism.

“Mama Africa” passes away at 76. One of Africa’s greatest music legends ever is dead after collapsing on stage during a performance in Italy this past weekend. Miriam Makeba suffered a heart attack early Monday following the late Sunday show. Makeba became known throughout the world for her songs in protest of South African apartheid. “Her haunting melodies gave voice to the pain of exile and dislocation which she felt for 31 long years,” former South African president Nelson Mandela said in a statement. “At the same time, her music inspired a powerful sense of hope in all of us.” Makeba was the first African woman to win a Grammy. She starred in 1959’s anti-apartheid documentary “Come Back, Africa” and, much later, made a guest appearance on “The Cosby Show.” Makeba was 76. Read more here.

South African singer “Mama Africa” dies.Miriam Makeba, the South African singer nicknamed “Mama Africa,” suffered a heart attack after performing and died Sunday in Italy. She was 76. Makeba was known for using her music to fight against apartheid in her native land which resulted in her being exiled from the nation for over 30 years. She performed for only a half an hour at Sunday night’s benefit concert in Castel Volturno, reports the AFP. “She had been the last one to go on stage, after the performances of other singers,” said a photographer who covered the event. “There were calls for an encore and at that moment someone asked if there was a doctor in the house. Miriam Makeba fainted and was lying on the floor.” After her anti-apartheid lyrics caused her citizenship to be revoked in 1960, South African authorities refused to let her back into the nation, even for her mother’s funeral. The country also banned her music, but that didn’t slow her popularity worldwide. She won a Grammy Award in 1965 for her album with Harry Belafonte, “An Evening With Belafonte/Makeba.” Her biggest hit was “Pata Pata” in 1967, but she made the uninformed decision to sign away all royalties on the song. “Though my music I became this voice and image of Africa, and the people, without even realizing,” she said in her biography. Her only daughter, Bongi Makeba, died in 1985. After living in the United States, Guinea and Europe, she returned to South Africa in the 1990s when Nelson Mandela was released from prison and the apartheid system crumbled. South African Foreign Minister Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma released a statement about Makeba’s death. “One of the greatest songstresses of our time Miriam Makeba has ceased to sing,” it he said. She “died performing what she did best – an ability to, communicate a positive message through the art of singing.” “Though my music I became this voice and image of Africa, and the people, without even realizing.”